Chapter Eleven: Panic

As the unnatural light fades, Chris finds himself back in the Bajoran temple. The vedek calmly closes the orb case before him.

Chris' heart pounds.

Kira's in danger! I have to warn her! But… one of them was a security officer. He'll be watching. What do I do?!

Chris' stomach churns at the thought of Kira being harmed—or killed.

"What is wrong, child?" the vedek asks calmly. "My apologies; Chris. You appear distressed."

Chris doesn't hear the vedek's words over his screaming thoughts.

They're monitoring communications. Just warning her could set off the bomb. I have to find out where she is!

"Can't talk!" Chris spits out as he turns to run. "But your gods just earned a lot of points in my book!"

Chris sprints to the temple exit but halts himself by veering into the doorframe.

Stop, you fool! They're monitoring security feeds. Calm down. Act natural.

Chris knows he can't go to security for help as one of the men in his vision was an officer. Beyond the officer and the Andorian, Chris has no way of knowing who else may be involved.

Who can I trust? Who can help?

"Quark, I gotta find Quark," Chris mutters to himself. He pushes off from the doorframe and walks briskly to the bar.

Rounding the corner into Quark's bar, Chris tries to look as calm as anyone can while wearing a wide-eyed expression of panic. He spots Quark talking to Morn.

Holy shit! Morn really talks!

Chris growls at himself.

C'mon, Chris; focus!

Chris anxiously scans the rest of the bar. He's positive the vision was real, but he has no idea if it was the past, present, or future. He takes an isolated seat near the far end of the counter and waves Quark over as urgently as he dares.

Quark holds up a hand for Chris to wait as Morn finishes a humorous anecdote.

Chris waves again, mouthing an unkind request.

"You kill me, Morn!" Quark laughs as he causally walks to the end of the bar. "What can I do for you, Chris? Come across some latinum that's burning a hole in your pocket?"

Chris leans over and whispers intensely. "Kira's in danger. There's a bomb."

Still tickled by Morn's story, Quark is slow to pick up on Chris' sincerity. He chuckles until he registers the panic in Chris' eyes. "Wait. You're serious? How do you know?"

"It doesn't matter, but I know you can access security systems. Can you find out where she is right now?"

"Oh, well, that's easy," Quark says as he begins to reach for the comm panel behind the bar.

Chris reaches across the bar and grabs Quark's arm. "Don't," he whispers loudly. "Someone from security's in on it. They'll be listening. We can't tip them off before we know where she is. The bomb's under her desk."

Quark's eyes widen as the gravity of the situation sinks in. He nods in understanding. Not wanting any security personnel to see what he's about to do, Quark scans the faces in the bar. "I see. This should only take a moment."

Quark retrieves a box from under the counter and opens it. Chris recognizes the security rods within and, though he has no idea how they work, knows they allow Quark to access and bypass certain systems on the station. Quark slides a data rod into a panel and rapidly presses buttons. A map appears with a pulsing dot.

"This isn't good." Quark shakes his head while staring at the screen. "She's in her office right now."

Chris reaches for his combadge. Quark tries to stop him, but Chris evades the maneuver and taps.

"Chris to Kira," Chris' voice shakes.

There's no immediate response.

"What are you doing?!" Quark whispers loudly.

"Shhh," Chris hushes Quark and listens, practically holding his breath.

Kira finally responds. She sounds overly annoyed. "Chris, I'm still in that meeting I told you about. I'll have to get back to you."

"Wait! This'll only take a second," Chris says quickly, hoping to keep Kira from closing the channel.

Quark puts his hands on the sides of his face, panicking as the situation unfolds. Moments tick by as the two wait for Kira's response.

Someone signals Quark for a refill, to which he responds harshly. "Whatever it is, we're out!"

"Alright, Chris," Kira finally responds. "What's so important? Are you OK?"

"I did some research and, uh… I found out what happened to my last known relative."

"Seriously, Chris?" Kira is perturbed. "Can't this wait?"

"Her name was Nana Visitor."

Quark looks at Chris like he's completely lost his mind and starts to object. Chris holds up a hand and shakes his head emphatically for Quark to wait. There's another long pause.

"I see." Kira's intrigued tone signals recognition of the name Chris used to address her when he arrived. "What happened to her?"

"She was murdered. It was, uh… it was…"

Quark can no longer stand the improvised warning. He lunges forward and yells at Chris' combadge. "There's a bomb in your office! Get out!"

Chris freezes in terror.

Not three seconds pass before the pair hears an explosion over the comm. Their faces distort as they imagine the worst.

Chris grabs Quark by the shoulders and shakes him violently. "What were you thinking?! They set it off because of you!"

"You were taking too long! Anyone listening had to know what you were doing. Were you trying to get her killed?!"

"Would you two shut up?!" Kira's voice explodes over the comm. "Everyone got out in one piece. I don't know how you knew… but thank you."

Ecstatic, Quark and Chris throw up their hands. "We did it!"

Shrugging off curious stares after his unusual display with Quark, Chris rushes to Ops. He does his best to avoid collisions while using his map PADD to navigate, but more than one pedestrian voices outrage as he barrels through the halls. He practically jumps ahead of two Starfleet personnel to claim a turbolift.

"Come on, come on," Chris mutters impatiently as the Starfleet officers object.

Chris anxiously taps his PADD against the railing as the turbolift slowly leaves the station.

Can't this thing go any faster?!

When Chris arrives in Ops, medical staff are already treating minor injuries and Julian is tending to a mildly-shaken Ezri.

Despite having heard her voice after the blast, Chris' heart leaps as he spots Kira alive and well. Facing away from him, she tosses her singed jacket to the side and steps into her office to survey the damage. Chris finds that he's stuck to the turbolift platform— frozen by a bombardment of thoughts and emotions. Almost losing someone has a way of letting you know exactly how you feel about them.

Catching a curious glance from Ezri, Chris quickly becomes self-conscious. He looks down and clears his throat to mask his expression. When he looks back up, Ezri wears a wry grin. She tilts her head in Kira's direction, signaling that Chris needs to get his butt over there already. Chris nods, practically bounds across Ops, and steps into Kira's office.

After kicking at some debris that used to be her desk, Kira kneels to pick up a shredded piece of leather and tangle of string. "Sorry, Benjamin," she mutters at the remains of Sisko's baseball.

Chris announces his presence: "I think he'll get over it."

In response to Chris' voice, Kira stands and spins while dropping the mangled ball. She wraps him in a tight bear hug. "Chris! How the hell did you know?"

Chris can't find his words. He basks in the joy of Kira's embrace.

With Chris' silence, Kira releases her hold. She steps back and grips his shoulders. She searches his eyes intently. "How did you know?"

Between the surprise embrace and the fate Kira barely escaped, Chris is overwhelmed. He struggles to suppress his emotions. "The, uh… the Prophets showed me."

"What? How?"

"A vedek—he showed me the orb. It gave me a vision. I was in Quark's and saw the Andorian with the hurt… thing," Chris points to his head. "He was talking to a security officer and they planned this together. They said you were getting too close to something?"

"The Andorian? And a security officer?" Kira is stunned. Her eyes scan the debris then lock onto Chris'. "Thank you. I owe you… everything."

Kira continues to stare into Chris' eyes. Chris stares back into Kira's. With her hands still gripping his shoulders, he gingerly places his on her waist. He imagines pulling her close for a kiss.

"Too close…" Kira whispers.

Chris blinks as Kira's words interrupt his fleeting fantasy.

"Too close to what?" Kira expands on her pondering. She blinks a half-glance downward as she realizes where Chris has placed his hands. She cocks her head and narrows her eyes. "What are you…?"

Chris swallows hard, fearing his longing impulse was too apparent.

Kira answers her own question with a furrowed brow. She turns from Chris and grumbles. "I don't need this."

"I'm… I'm sorry," Chris whispers. "I just…"

"Don't," Kira says as she drops to the floor and starts sifting through debris. "I heard enough excuses yesterday."

"They weren't excuses. I honestly didn't know what I was feeling."

"And now you do?" Kira asks angrily. "What exactly? One day on the station and you think…?" Kira scoffs. "I don't have time for this."

Chris falls silent. His heart and stomach knot together as the full realization of his love for this woman collides with her newfound hatred of him. He doesn't know what to say, and there's nothing left in the room to crawl beneath. If it didn't mean facing Ezri and all of Ops in his current state, he'd turn and run away. All he can do is stand there and flinch with every chunk of debris that Kira flings across the room.

"The Prophets asked me to help, so I'll help," Kira spits out between throws, "but I have no intention of entertaining this… this…"

Trapped in an emotional corner, Chris finally finds his voice. "I can help," he says quietly, "if you tell me what you're looking for."

Kira doesn't acknowledge Chris' offer as she continues to search. "Got it," she says after chucking a few more pieces of rubble aside. She lifts a PADD from the ruins and dusts it off. "It's still working."

Chris is speechless as Kira scrolls through data on the PADD. Her refusal to acknowledge his presence is torturous.

Kira's tapping on the pad is almost violent with frustration. "I don't get it! What am I close to?" Her head droops in defeat and she lets out a heavy sigh. "Chris?"

Chris barely manages a whisper. "Yes?"

Kira doesn't look up. "I don't know what you're thinking. I don't want to, and I don't care. But… I need you to tell me everything about your vision."

Chris feels the stab of Kira's tone. "I'm sorry. I…"

Kira's head lowers even further as she lifts a hand for Chris to stop. "Just… stick to the vision."

Chris takes a deep breath. He closes his eyes to shut out Kira's angry posture. "One of the men said you've been keeping… whatever this is to yourself. They seemed happy about that. I think you should ask for help."

Kira doesn't look up from the rubble. "I'm asking you."

Chris blinks his eyes open. "But…"

"Admiral Ross' aide is shaken up. Ross himself is locked down on the Venture by now because of the blast. The list of people I trust right now is pretty short."

Chris struggles to swallow. "I know… I know you don't care too much for me, but… I hope you know you can trust me."

Kira makes a sweeping nod before looking up at Chris. "I…" she pauses at his regretful expression. "I don't have time to address… how you feel."

Chris nods.

"But you're right," Kira says. "I believe I can trust you. Otherwise…"

Chris' voice cracks. "You'd be dead."

The two share an uneasy stare.

Kira blinks slowly and raises the PADD. "Does this mean anything to you?"

Chris sighs before shifting his eyes from Kira's. "What am I looking at?"

"This is every piece of cargo that's moved through the station in the last few days. I suspect someone's smuggling something through here to attack the Founders."

"And Odo."

Kira nods without hesitation. "And Odo."

Chris looks away from Kira's intense stare. The turn of the conversation plunges him further into darkness. "They didn't say anything about cargo—or the Founders."

"Are you sure? This is important."

"I know what he means to you," Chris nods to piece of charred and twisted metal on the floor. "The Prophets only showed them talking about the bomb."

"Right. The Andorian and…"

Chris looks up as Kira's words stop abruptly. Her eyes are wide and shift haphazardly as she tries to capture her thoughts.

"…someone in security," Kira finally finishes her sentence. "They can alter records."

Chris may as well be in another quadrant. Kira avoids eye contact and speaks her thoughts aloud.

"I'm not looking for data; I'm looking for data manipulation."

Chris' shoulders drop as he feels even further removed. He really didn't need a second lesson in how much it hurts to be ignored.

"This explosion…" Kira says as she rises to her feet. "I don't have much time."

Kira sidesteps Chris to leave her office. She grabs her jacket and heads to the turbolift. "Dax! I need to borrow you in the security office. Bring a weapon."

Stealing a confused glance at Chris, Ezri rushes to a weapons locker and grabs a phaser. She quickly falls in step with Kira to board the turbolift. Kira's attention remains focused on the PADD as the lift descends.

Chris stands speechless, following them with his eyes. Ezri returns an apologetic pout as she and Kira disappear below the platform.

On the turbolift, Ezri watches her friend stare intently at a PADD.

"What happened up there?" Ezri asks. "He saved your life and you just… left him there. He looked…"

"I know," Kira's says without turning from her PADD. "I don't want to talk about it."

"He cares about you, Kira."

Kira huffs.

"Odo's gone. You said yourself that he could be with the Founders for lifetimes trying to reshape the Dominion."

Kira shakes the PADD and glares. "And I want him to have that chance!"

Ezri recoils from the outburst. "What? What are you talking about?"

"Someone's trying to kill Odo—and every other Founder along with him. After what they did during the war, I don't give a damn about the rest. But Odo… he's all that matters."

"And Chris? The Prophets asked you to…"

"Don't," Kira points the PADD at Ezri then off in a random direction. "I'm getting enough guilt from him as it is."

Ezri starts to open her mouth again but thinks better of it.

"I need your help, Dax," Kira pleads.

Ezri sighs, straightens her shoulders, and nods to her friend. "Tell me what you need."